The Schmooze lies at the intersection of high and low culture. Here, the latest developments and trends in Jewish art, books, dance, film, music, media, television and theater are all assimilated into one handy pop culture blog.
The Schmooze
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The New Yorker Goes to Brooklyn for ‘Hipster or Hasid’ Cover
This week’s New Yorker cover taps into the visual similarities between two very different types of Brooklyn dwellers: Hasidic Jews and hipsters. The striking image is named “Take the L Train,” referring to the Brooklyn-bound subway line, and features a hipster and a Hasid, back to back, sporting the same long black beard. The Orthodox…
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Garry Shandling’s Secret Health Struggle Revealed
While the exact cause of funnyman Gary Shandling’s sudden death remains unclear — a heart attack is suspected — a little-known disease he had may also have played a part. The Atlantic reports that Shandling suffered from hyperparathyroidism. He mentioned his diagnosis during a January episode of Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee. He joked to…
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Alan Cumming and Monica Lewinsky Win April Fools’ Day With Brilliant Idea
The Internet has been overrun with , from Google’s MicDrop debacle to Yahoo convincing panicked fans that Trader Joe’s was closing down. So you can understand why this was us at the Forward all day as we read the news: Me when I’m browsing the Internet today #AprilFools pic.twitter.com/8toPAkMK5t — Austin (@Dat_Saintsfan) April 1, 2016…
The Latest
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Shmuley Boteach Selling New Jersey ‘Manor’ for $3.5M
Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, who calls himself “America’s Rabbi,” is seeking to sell his mansion in suburban New York City. Boteach, the author of such books as “Kosher Sex” and “Kosher Adultery,” and his wife are asking $3.5 million for their eight-bedroom home in Englewood, New Jersey, NorthJersey.com. The price represents a $4 million drop from last…
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William Shatner Hits Back at ‘Love Child’ Who Filed $170M Paternity Suit
James T. Kirk, our favorite Jewish starship captain, was the randiest guy in the galaxy. And so, it seems, is the actor who played the legendary Enterprise flyboy. That bit is actually not news. After all, the 85-year-old Shatner is now on wife Number 4. What is news is a blockbuster lawsuit filed by a…
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Ben & Jerry’s Giving Out Free ‘Bernie’s Yearning’ in NYC
Ben & Jerry’s are giving out free “Bernie’s Yearning,” their Bernie Sanders themed ice-cream at Union Square this afternoon, starting at 5 PM EST. Ben Cohen, the founder of the Vermont ice cream chain tweeted the following to advertise the event. Jerry & I are headed to #NYC — if you’ve been waiting to try…
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Garry Shandling To Have Buddhist Funeral
(JTA) — Garry Shandling, the award-winning American Jewish comedian who at 66, will have a Buddhist funeral. The service, which Shandling had arranged secretly, will take place next month, TMZ reported. The cause of his March 24 death is still unknown. According to the celebrity gossip site, “He was never very vocal about it, but…
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Broadway “Crucible” Tries To Shake Off Memory of Ted Cruz’s Performance
Let’s start by acknowledging that when discussing Ted Cruz performing in “The Crucible” it is impossible to avoid using the pun “Cruzible.” (This pun, which conjures images of Cruz as a “Grease”-era John Travolta type gyrating on a car roof whilst spouting poetic on mortality, feels oily to even write, let alone say. Poor Arthur…
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Emily Ratajkowski Posts Topless Twitter Pic with Kim Kardashian
Jewish actress and model Emily Ratajkowsi posted a topless picture with Kim Kardashian on Twitter, with both of them prominently giving the middle finger to the camera. The photo and caption are a clap back to the criticism Kardashian received in March for posting a nude photo on Instagram, drawing attacks from the likes of…
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On Jerusalem Walls, Artist Memorializes Black Rabbi from Harlem
When Rabbi Mordecai Herman would visit the Lower East Side of the 1920s, then teeming with Jewish immigrants from Europe, he cut an intriguing figure. He was a wizened black rabbi and former sailor from Harlem who spoke Hebrew, some Yiddish, and was a pioneering spiritual leader of the early black Israelite movement. Now, nearly…
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Gayle Kirschenbaum On Her Oy Vey Mom ‘Selfie’ Film: ‘Look At Us Now Mother!’
“We are all prisoners of our family life experience” Gayle Kirschenbaum — artist, filmmaker, and creator told me during several conversations about her autobiographical documentary “Look At Us Now Mother!” — an emotional, kishke-churning rollercoaster ride dealing with her mother’s lifelong torturing “get a nose job mantra” and more. Truth be told, my reaction to…
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Most Popular
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Film & TV The new ‘Superman’ is being called anti-Israel, but does that make it pro-Palestine?
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Fast Forward Tucker Carlson calls for stripping citizenship from Americans who served in the Israeli army
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Music ‘No matter what, I will always be a Jew.’ Billy Joel opens up about his family’s Holocaust history
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Culture She was my Hebrew school bully — and I finally learned what happened to her
In Case You Missed It
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Culture In this Holocaust story, there are few words, no swastikas, no yellow stars — just movement, passion and empathy
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Opinion What Democrats fighting Trump should learn from Germany’s failure to stop Hitler
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Fast Forward 31st anniversary of AMIA bombing marked by ceremonies in Argentina, Israel and, for the first time, Congress
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Fast Forward Mike Huckabee to Israel: End hostile treatment of Christian allies
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